Wendy Williams’ Guardian Files Lawsuit Against Lifetime’s Parent Company Ahead of New Documentary

The guardian of Wendy Williams has filed a lawsuit against Lifetime’s parent company, A&E Television Networks.

The security guard, identified by TMZ as Sabrina Morrissey, filed the lawsuit under seal Thursday, two days before the new Lifetime documentary is scheduled to premiere Where is Wendy Williams?which explores Williams’ life under her tutelage.

“The new lawsuit appears to have been filed as an attempt to ban the upcoming documentary from airing Where’s Wendy Williams?” a source familiar with the case tells PEOPLE.

Wendy Williams Family Breaks Silence On Her ‘Shocking And Heartbreaking’ Struggles Over The Last 3 Years (Exclusive)

A hearing has reportedly been set for next week for a judge to determine whether the documents should remain sealed.

Morrissey and A&E did not respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

While speaking with PEOPLE for this week’s cover story on Williams, Mark Ford, the documentary’s executive producer, said that “Wendy’s attorneys and custody attorneys have been consulted and signed off” on the project.

“The film was underwritten by Wendy, her management, her lawyers, the guardianship,” he said. “They were aware of the shoot until the end. So we went by the book and got all the permissions we needed to get. We went into this movie thinking it was one thing, and the truth turned out to be another. Once we started to see the truth of the situation, we weren’t could ignore. And the film had to go in the direction of the truth.”

Wendy Williams 2021.

BACKGRID

In the documentary, Williams claims that her guardian, whose identity remains a secret in the film, stole her money. The filmmakers say she did not provide evidence.

When the Lifetime documentary crew began filming in August 2022, they set out to follow Williams’ comeback as she prepared to launch a new podcast. The film quickly evolved into something else entirely, as the crew caught Williams in the throes of alcohol addiction and struggling with health issues including Graves’ disease, an autoimmune disorder that can cause swollen eyes, and lymphedema, a condition that causes her feet to swell.

Wendy Williams, 59, diagnosed with aphasia and frontotemporal dementia, according to her medical team

The documentary crew stopped filming Williams in April 2023. That month, she checked into a facility for what her family was told were “cognitive issues.” In the documentary, her son Kevin Hunter Jr. says he was diagnosed by the doctors his mom saw in Florida. “Because she was drinking, I think they said it was alcohol-induced dementia,” Kevin Jr. reveals. .

Earlier Thursday, Williams’ care team announced that she has primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia (FTD), a diagnosis the family says they were unaware of.

According to a press release, Williams received her diagnosis last year, and her medical team said the conditions “already posed significant obstacles in Wendy’s life.”

“Wendy can still do many things for herself,” the team said in a statement. “Most importantly, she maintains her trademark sense of humor and receives the care she needs to make sure she is protected and that her needs are addressed. She is grateful for the many kind thoughts and good wishes that have been sent to her.”

Wendy Williams on her show in 2019.

Fox

Williams remains in the facility to this day, and her family says her caregiver is the only person who has unfettered access to her.

Her family says they don’t know where she is and can’t call her themselves, but she can call them.

“People who love her can’t see her,” says Wendy’s sister, Wanda. “I think it’s big [question] is: How the hell did we get here?”

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Source: HIS Education